Penza region

Museums of Penza region

POIM HISTORY ARCHITECT MUSEUM

It is mentioned from the end of 17 centuries, but it is more known as an ancestral
lands of Sheremetyevi. The village is remarkable that it was and remains the
centre of church split in the Volga region, well-known for the crafts.

Museum exhibits have been carefully gathered within the last 45 years. These
are ancient subjects of a life and art of settlers. The village always was a
popular place for fans of rare antiques and admirers of olden time, both among
Russians, and among foreigners. In 1995 Alexander Solzhenitsyn visited Poim,
he has enthusiastically responded about the careful relation of local residents
to the heritage. Some of exhibits, for example, the silver coffin, subjects
of fulfilment of religious practices represent special art value and contain
in special storehouse. For their viewing the special permission is required.
Poim — an open-air museum. Folk customs, crafts, religion of Old Believers
and new orthodox, various architectural styles — all has intertwined here.
The modern shape of village has the big art value. Here it is possible to glance
in the house-museum of the writer A.P.Anisimova.

Address: Penza region, BeLinskiy district, Poim

BELINSKY'S MEMORIAL ESTATE

History has given to Belinsky a role of a literary critic. However he has
allocated the key figures of the intellectual mainstream which have become a
world heritage - Lomonosov, Gogol, Pushkin. Today a rich collection of materials
about a life and creativity of the critic it is placed in . a building of the
former district school and the two-storeyed house of merchants Artushini.

Address: Belinsky city, Borisheva St., 4. Ph.+7 (841-53)
2-16-57

A.N.RADISHCHEV'S STATE MUSEUM

The museum displays household things belonged to Radishchevs, rare, unique
' books and engravings of the late 18th century, and a manuscript of the writer's
main book "Traveling from Petersburg to Moscow". While in Radishchevo,
pay attention to the Nativity of Christ Church built by Radishchev's great-grandfather
in 1724. The original iconostasis of this ancient temple is executed in baroque
style of the mid 18th century.

ZOLOTAREVSKOYE GORODISHCHE

One of the latest finds - an archaeological monument of medieval history.
Here for 6 centuries a large city existed, which in 1237 has rebuffed groups
of khan Batiy. Up to 7000 people died in fight.

Museum of Kuprin

We advise to visit a museum of the Russian writer A. Kuprin. The museum of
the Russian writer Alexander Kuprin is opened at the support of the writer's
daughter K.A.Kuprina, who transferred the family archive of the emigration period
to the museum, as well as the writer's personal things and books from his library.
The collection is also interesting by the lifetime editions of Kuprin's works,
with original illustrations to them. Here one can see film and photo materials
depicted A.I.Kuprina's stories about her father.

NIKOLSKY MUSEUM OF GLASS AND CRYSTAL

In 1789, owner of the Nikolsky crystal factory N.A.Bakhmetev started to collect
the best pieces of the factory's production.

Crystal was really excellent - from Nikolsk it was delivered to the imperial
court and crowned persons in different parts of the world, and also to high
nobility, churches and monasteries. In 1829, at the first exhibition of manufactured
products, the factory received a gold medal for the presented exhibits.

Special admiration causes an exhibit "a glass with a fly", made
by request of the landowner which son has conceived a liking for alcohol. How
many the son poured an ominous potion - it seemed to him, that there a fly floating
in a glass. Today, the museum houses items from different national schools,
and ancient crystal from the Nikolsky factory decorates the collections in the
Hermitage and Pavlovsky Palace.